Jo's road to The Cotswold Face Place has been a long and winding one - originally trained as a beauty therapist, traditional barber and ladies' hairdresser, she went on to travel the world as a United Airlines flight attendant, learning at first hand the disastrous effects of long haul flights on the skin and body. Jo recounts how she didn’t like United Airlines lemon scent they had to put on the hot towels so she used her own lavender and rosemary oils, which the passengers loved and her air crew friends said it put them in a better mood.
Jo had always practised a healthy lifestyle and obsessed over top-of-the-range skincare products. During stopovers in far-flung places she sought out high end wellbeing and beauty treatments but quickly realised no amount of expensive lotions and potions would offset the stress and premature ageing that are the side effects of international flying. A relaxing or vigorous massage working on pressure points and meridians was far more effective at returning the face and skin to its original rested look. This realisation was reinforced when she visited Japan and experienced Japanese Shiatsu massage, wellbeing rituals and treatments that recognise and embrace the link between outer beauty and inner peace. Jo also realised that the physical changes that take place during the traditional herbal and mineral hot pools in Japanese bath houses along with the stimulation of muscles and skin allowed one's true inner light to shine.
After training in Oriental massage styles including Chinese Tuina and Balinese massage she was finally grounded by the birth of her son and at last able to pursue the dream of opening her own health and beauty centre with the emphasis on a holistic approach to looking good.The result was the highly successful Josspa which ran from 2007-2016.
Fast forward a few years and, after closing Josspa, Jo concentrated on developing her new passion: foot care. She opened her Cotswold Foot Clinics in Cheltenham and Gloucester, combined with home visits for the elderly, offering an overlap from medical foot care to a more complete service including luxury pedicures and the benefits of
Reflexology. By 2019 Jo was engaged to the fabulous Simon who operated his business from the Churchill Industrial Estate, nestling in the heart of Leckhampton. Jo realised she was missing the buzz of Josspa and saw a chance to do it all again on a smaller scale to run alongside her beloved footcare business: the rest is history. With the help of Simon's amazing vision, energy and financial backing she opened First Floor BFF. The smaller scale operation has worked well during lockdowns; specialised commercial air conditioner and air
sterilisation systems [certified to kill bacteria, viruses and Covid 19] have been installed in the treatment rooms. With cutting edge technology combined with plenty of old school hands-on therapy Jo offered impressive non-surgical face lifts, skin tightening and rejuvenation along with her basic chiropody work and holistic treatments. Now rebranded as The Cotswold Face Place, Jo now has her treatment room in her lovely family home.
Judging from the glowing feedback from Jo's faithful band of regular clients and a steady flow of new ones it looks like Simon and Jo's hard work has all been worth it. If 'a journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step' Jo is
well on the road: the future is looking good.